Reflections on Module 1

Module 1 has come to an end and before I move to Module 2, it is time for me to reflect on what I have learned so far. Some parts are clear but others have left me confused.

Learning is a process more than an outcome/product. I believe that learning is used to create actions/products.

Learning is a combination of deep and surface learning. Facts need to be memorized but content should be understood. For eg, times-tables need to be memorized. It is not feasible to derive it every time you are solving multiplication sums. Same thing goes with dates. For eg, if you are studying history. Facts related to dates need to be memorized. Only then you can go deeper with the reasons for the wars, etc.

Inductive and deductive approached to learning- I believe, here again, it is more about a combination of these two approaches rather than a personal style. Some content matter might require ne approach more than the other. But yes, as educators, we need to be aware of these two approaches and use them wisely in our teaching.

It is true that not everything taught is learned by the students. This could be due to various factors like lack of interest on behalf o the learner, teacher’s teaching style/manner being in conducive for the learner, etc.

An effective teacher would try that most of what is being taught is also being learned.

But students also learn from their peers, learning environment, society, etc. Students also come with prior knowledge that will have a great impact on their learning in the class.

The part which has left me confused is the meaning of unlearned phenomenon. I had an understanding that ‘unlearned’ means that we unlearn what we know, in order to relearn it in a different manner/context. For eg, present day teaching style. When I was in school, we were taught in a different manner- learning from books, rote method used most of the times, progression based solely on test scores,etc. But when I started teaching in an IB school 8 years back, I had to ‘unlearn’ all that. I had to ‘relearn’ teaching. Now, I was expected to use books sparingly, make use of various methods like manipulatives, videos, field trips ,etc to teach. Assessments are done year- round and tests carry a minuscule weight.

However, when I went through the various examples shared by my group members, I felt that by ‘unlearned’, they mean, something that comes naturally, without explicitly or formally learning it in a class/school.

Hope to get a better understanding on this, even if it means that I have to unlearn the definition of ‘unlearned’ and relearn the new one 🙂 🙂